H.R. 1561
ALERT Communities Act
Sponsor: Jasmine Crockett · 1 cosponsor
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Official summary
Written by the Congressional Research Service.
Advancing Lifesaving Efforts with Rapid Test strips for Communities Act or the ALERT Communities Act
This bill establishes programs and requirements to advance the development and usage of test strips that detect the presence of certain hazardous drugs (e.g., fentanyl, xylazine).
Currently, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration provides grants to government entities to train and provide authorized equipment to first responders and other relevant personnel for emergency treatment of opioid overdoses. The bill expands these grants to include rapid response test strips for detecting the presence of fentanyl, xylazine, and other synthetic opioids or emerging substances in people or within other drugs.
Additionally, the bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to publish guidance and standards for test strip manufacturers to support the development, evaluation, and authorization of test strips.
Also, HHS must conduct a study and report to Congress on how the availability and usage of test strips and similar equipment impacts the frequency of overdoses and participation in substance use disorder treatment.
Text of the bill
This Act may be cited as the Advancing Lifesaving Efforts with Rapid Test strips for Communities Act or the ALERT Communities Act.
Section 546(c) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290ee–1(c)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (3), by striking ; and and inserting a semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (4), by striking the period and inserting ; and; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
(5) train and provide resources for first responders and members of other relevant community sectors on carrying and facilitating access to fentanyl or xylazine test strips (as defined in section 5 of the Advancing Lifesaving Efforts with Rapid Test strips for Communities Act).
The Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Director of the National Institutes of Health, the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the Commissioner of Food and Drugs, and the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, shall develop and make publicly available research and marketing frameworks for developing, improving, and evaluating test strip technology for detecting fentanyl and other dangerous substances. Such frameworks shall—
(1) include standards and guidance for manufacturers seeking to develop and test new test strip technology;
(2) emphasize bringing new test strip technology intended for testing human specimens in clinical settings to support on-site clinical decision-making; and
(3) include guidance on available authorization pathways for test strips described in paragraphs (1) and (2).
The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall—
(1) conduct a study on the impact of the availability, accessibility, and usage of drug checking supplies, including test strips, on frequency of overdose, overdose deaths, and engagement in substance use disorder treatment; and
(2) not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, submit to Congress a report on the study conducted under paragraph (1).
In this Act, the term test strip means a rapid response, single use diagnostic that can be used to detect the adulteration of a drug with, or the presence in a human specimen of, any substance that may lead to increased morbidity or mortality, such as fentanyl, xylazine, or another synthetic opioid or emerging substance.